Mashad Power Plant in History

Gholamreza Azari Khakestar
Translated by Abbas Hajihashemi

2015-11-16

Mashad Power Plant and its Personnel

The power industry in the northeastern city of Mashad, Khorasan Razavi Province, Iran, has undergone numerous ups and downs ever since the first power generator was launched in the city some 117 years ago. A review of the history of the industry in Mashad has been provided in a book entitled as "100 Years of Khorasan Power Industry". Besides, a number of articles have been penned in this regard which shed light on the matter from different perspectives.

Mashad Power Generation Administration has been run by numerous directors and a large number of its staff members have been serving the city's citizens unrelentingly. Registration and recording the memories of the staff can ensure preservation of the history of the industry in Mashad. Over the past years, a number of interviews have been conducted with some of these personnel. The interviews are being kept at oral history archives of Astan Qods Razavi.

Almost nothing has been left of the first generation of the first operators and workers in the industry except for some documents and personal notes. The oral memories of a limited number of the workers and technicians who joined the plant after 1936 are now available. The interviews were conducted during an oral history project initiated by the city's textile and spinning factory.

The recordings cover topics like the status of power generation in the past, private power plants operating in the city, the power supply to households and power-related accidents. Thousands of history pages on power industry of Khorasan Province are archived at Astan Qods' document center which offers a rich source for oral history studies on the industry. The documents entail useful data on how power generation machinery were purchased and how the power grid was structured, or how subscribers received their services. How the power administration's staff were remunerated and the pricing of power services for subscribers can also be found in these documents.

Given the history of power generation industry in the city, carrying out an oral history on the large number of retired power engineers and technicians can be very useful.

Qajar kings, Nasereddin Shah and Mozaffaredin Shah, brought with them souvenirs from their euro-visits which included power generators as well.

The first electric lamp was lit at Imam Reza holy shrine in the city of Mashad. A guy named Mohammad Bagher Milani, reputed as Rezayev, bought the generator during Mozafarreding Shah's reign and offered it to the holy shrine. The generator was installed at a nearby spot. The generator had a steam engine which ran on coal and was English-made. It could generate 6,600 kilowatts and 110 volts of power. The generated power was used to light Imam Reza's holy shrine and yards as well as the adjacent buildings and parts of the neighborhood where the generator was installed. In 1902, another generator by Haj Amir Razavi was purchased and granted to the shrine. The 25 horsepower generator was installed beside the first generator to supply more power for the city of Mashad.

Later on, because the generators were no longer able to supply the needed power for lighting the shrine's buildings and mosques, a new generator was installed at Tabaresi St.

"The lighting of the holy shrine at night is done by a power generator which was offered by the mother of Mr. Khan to the shrine," wrote an Indian visitor of the shrine about the lighting of the shrine's yards and buildings. The mother of Mr. Khan Mahalati was known as Bi Bi Shamsodoleh, a religious lady living in India. She bought a Blackstone generator and offered it to the shrine. The 24 horsepower engine generated direct current and was installed on Tabaresi St.

As the number of generators rose in the city, people began to realize the benefits of power in their lives and began to call for that. The public call for electricity prompted some investors to think of entering into the power generation business and investing in the field. The first person to step in this path was a guy called Mr. Jafar-Zadeh. He began his business by renting Astan Qods power house and later on bought himself a direct-current 34 horsepower Blackstone generator and had it installed at Chaharbaq neighborhood in Mashad. The people were charged by the number of lamps they lit.

"In the past, most of the people used lamps for lighting: bulbs V, VII and X were the most popular lamps people used at that time," said Mohammad Mehdi Barouhi, an elderly who used to work for the power administration of the city. "Every evening, a municipal agent with a small jug of kerosene in his hand would climb lamp posts to fill them. The lamps would barely enlighten streets and passages. The first electric lamp in Mashad was offered by spinning factory. It lit some of the city's streets."

Javad Shahrestani, engineer, surrounded by staff of Mashad Power Administration

Power Company

According to Maktab Shapour, there were as many as 22 power generators in Mashad in 1934 which could light up 20,000 lamps. However, only 8,400 lamps were lit in the city at most.

Before then, the city's power was supplied by private companies which jockeyed for pricing of their services.

In mid-1937, Mashad Municipality required power generating companies to join and form up a holding to unite power prices.

On Monday, February 6, 1939, a deal was signed by some power heavyweights in the city to buy power generators from Germany. Moreover, on Saturday, April 22, 1939, another agreement was signed by Khorasan Power Company to buy a 95-ampere, 110-volt Blackstone generator. During the year, the city's spinning company and power administration worked together to initiate serious measures to form the city's power grid. The power company was formed in 1937 with an investment of 18,000,000 Iranian rials in an area of 54,000 meters near Roudaki Square. The company supplied a part of the city's need for electricity.

In the final years of the World War II, Khorasan Power Company sent two of its engineers to Europe to purchase new generators. After 8 months, they purchased three 1065 horsepower diesel generators. By 1949, the company had 7 generators which supplied nearly 2,600,000 kilowatts. In Mashad, electricity was offered more expensive than in Tehran.